Just today I got news that my brother lost his phone. This link (from the subreddit AndroidQuestions's sidebar) is a great resource, and I'll just leave it here.
http://www.reddit.com/r/Android/comments/jbk0f/phone_lost_stolen_or_missing_calm_down_read_this/
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Nexus 4 review
The Nexus 4 was essentially sold out for the first two and a half months, but I finally got my paws on one.
The design of the Nexus 4 borrows from a lot of different devices, but it all comes together quite nicely. You've got a glass back similar to older iPhones (although with a really cool glistening effect), the rounded top and bottom from the Galaxy Nexus, a hint of Optimus G, and the slight curve off the edge of the glass seen on the One X. Nothing looks out of place, and it's all sleek when seen together.
Google and LG made the phone feel good, although it doesn't feel great. That being said, it feels much nicer than any other $350 phone out there (the glass back really helps it feel sturdy). The back has been known to scratch easily, and is very slippery. I ordered a skin from DBrand.com that arrived the day after my Nexus 4 did, and it seems to be strong enough to protect it from scratches. A bonus with the skin is that I can leave it on tables knowing it won't slide off (which has unfortunately happened to others).
You've probably heard it everywhere else online, but the operating system is buttery smooth. Obviously - Jelly Bean is Project Butter for heavens sake. The only lag I've seen is from time to time when scrolling quickly through the widgets (in the app drawer) for the first time - and even then it was only for a millisecond. After the first time (say, scrolling back though) it's back to butter.
Some people aren't fond of the new 4.2 look - Google has oddly bolded some numbers while leaving others untouched at least with their clock app and digital clock widgets. The hour is bold, while the minute digits aren't. There might be a reason for it, bit I think its mostly just esthetics. There is also some red in the color scheme in the clock... Weird considering everything is greyscale and light blue everywhere. Is the big G teasing us with what Key Lime Pie will look like? I sure hope so, because I like this look.
Every app I use work great on the Nexus 4, and are all super smooth. I'd hope so - the quad core S4 PRO professor and 2GB of RAM better not take a break ever when the screen is on. Need for Speed, ShadowGun Deadzone, Dead Trigger and every other mobile game I play looked terrific (well...ShadowGun Deadzone wasn't perfectly smooth but I'll blame that on my internet. Mobile online multiplayer games tend to do that). Load times were quick, multitasking remained snappy even when lots of apps were open...if any of you think benchmarks are really useful, forget what you know. Compared to other quad core phones, the Nexus 4 doesn't benchmark very well, but it feels just as fast (if not faster) than any other phone period.
In the typical day, the battery lasted long enough. Some days I had 50% juice left when I put it back on the charger(extremely light use), other times I had to find my charger early. It really depended on the day-to-day usage. Just to give you some examples, one day I has the screen on for 3 hours and 45 minutes (including 2 streaming Netflix episodes that took 40 minutes each), 1 hour of screen-off audio, and light usage besides that. In 12 hours, it discharged to 15%. That's not bad at all, all things considered. It was tough getting to 4 hours of screen on time though, which is understandable considering the 4.7" HD display (that looks great by the way, even if the colors are a bit warm) and the 2100mAh battery.
Another day of battery stats: off the charger for 13 hours, mediaserver taking 20% of the battery (3h30m Keep Awake), Screen took 18% (3h screen on time), and netflix at 13% (1h CPU foreground) were the top 3 battery hogs. Wifi on all day, screen on minimum brightness, data on for a total of around 1/2 hour. Not too bad.
Another day of battery stats: off the charger for 13 hours, mediaserver taking 20% of the battery (3h30m Keep Awake), Screen took 18% (3h screen on time), and netflix at 13% (1h CPU foreground) were the top 3 battery hogs. Wifi on all day, screen on minimum brightness, data on for a total of around 1/2 hour. Not too bad.
I ordered a case the day after I ordered the N4, and it still hasn't come in yet (good old eBay). I'm paranoid about dropping it mostly because of the glass back, even if it has a skin on it. It's such a nice phone, and I don't want to have to go back to using any other device (thanks for letting me use your old BlackBerry Curve Brad, but you can have it back now)
Pros: sharp, bright, crisp screen, fast processor, smooth interface, PhotoSphere, latest version of android
Cons: no expandable storage, no LTE, camera quality, battery life (usage dependent)
Overall, the Nexus 4 is an amazing phone. I'm going to give it a solid 9/10. It could have easily been 10/10, but the storage is small for some users, LTE would have been nice, and the camera could have been better.
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
[Accessory] DBrand Skin
I just applied the Titanium skin to the back of my Nexus 4. It fits perfectly, and really feels nice. I can't speak for the other skins, but the titanium one at least feels smooth when running your fingers down the vertical lines, and makes the back of the phone a bit less slippery (I still won't trust it on any slanted platform for fear of it sliding off).
It looks really sleek and matches the color of the silver rim around the screen, which is also the same color as the volume and power buttons.
There are cutouts for the camera, flash, and speaker, as well as the Nexus logo itself - the rest is uninterrupted (it covers the LG logo, the small writing on the bottom, and doesn't add any DBrand branding either). About the Nexus logo - it looks really sharp. It is beneath the glass back, and as such looks noticeably deeper giving a nice depth effect. It still stands out as it's very shiny compared to the less shiny skin.
If I didn't just put the skin on myself, I'd think the back of the phone was meant to look as it does now.
I'd suggest a DBrand skin if your electronic is supported (iPhone 4, 4S, 5, Nexus 4 &7, Galaxy S 3, iPads as well as PS3, XBox and the PS Vita).
DBrand is the self-proclaimed "Boss of vinyl skins" with the mission to "Save the world from inferior skins, one device at a time". I can vouch for this. You can find out more on their website, http://dbrand.com/index.php?main_page=index.
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
Reddit apps for Android - the new kid on the block.
I've been redditing on different accounts for a bit over a year now, and Reddit has a special place in my heart. Obviously, Android has a special place too in there. It's really amazing when I found an app that bridges those two interests together.
When I installed my first Reddit app, I went to [Reddit News](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=free.reddit.news&feature=nav_other#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDYsImZyZWUucmVkZGl0Lm5ld3MiXQ..). The swiping gestures were neat, but eventually I settled down for the ultra-popular, feature rich [Reddit is Fun](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.andrewshu.android.reddit&feature=nav_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDNd) (which I've herd is a /r/Android favorite). A few weeks ago I found one Reddit app to rule them all.
[Reddit Now Beta](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.phyora.apps.reddit_now) has been my go-to Reddit app for nearly a month now, and I can't see myself switching back anytime soon for casual Redditing (it doesn't have all the features of Reddit is Fun yet, and I'll keep that on the side for now). When you open the app, you go to the Front Page tab. Scroll left and you'll get to My Reddits, scroll right to go to All, followed to all your subscribed reddits. Scrolling is smooth, and so are all the animations everywhere. Posts line up down the left 4/5 of the page, and the right 1/5 of the screen you get the preview of the edge of the post you have selected. It looks out of place at first, but I quickly got used to it and now it makes sense to be there.
To read an article, either touch on it, or touch on the preview (the right 1/5 of the screen) and drag to the left, uncovering the post. To see comments, grab the bottom bar (which has the up/down vote buttons and other information) and drag up. To go back to the subreddit and see more posts, grab the left edge of the screen and pull right, reducing the post back to the tall, slim preview it was before.
If you want to get rid of the "panel overlap" feature, you can do so in the settings (this is the preview on the right 1/5 of the page or so). This makes the app appear and act more like a traditional Reddit app (which could be for some people...not me though).
This app has less than 10,000 downloads, requires 1.1MB of storage, and android 4.0 and up. I really think it deserves some recognition. It's a very solid Reddit app, which looks amazing. It is missing more advanced features (mod options such as Reddit is Fun offers), but that's to be expected from a beta app. It's worth the free, small download. Maybe if you like it, you could suggest it to a friend!
When I installed my first Reddit app, I went to [Reddit News](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=free.reddit.news&feature=nav_other#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDYsImZyZWUucmVkZGl0Lm5ld3MiXQ..). The swiping gestures were neat, but eventually I settled down for the ultra-popular, feature rich [Reddit is Fun](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.andrewshu.android.reddit&feature=nav_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDNd) (which I've herd is a /r/Android favorite). A few weeks ago I found one Reddit app to rule them all.
[Reddit Now Beta](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.phyora.apps.reddit_now) has been my go-to Reddit app for nearly a month now, and I can't see myself switching back anytime soon for casual Redditing (it doesn't have all the features of Reddit is Fun yet, and I'll keep that on the side for now). When you open the app, you go to the Front Page tab. Scroll left and you'll get to My Reddits, scroll right to go to All, followed to all your subscribed reddits. Scrolling is smooth, and so are all the animations everywhere. Posts line up down the left 4/5 of the page, and the right 1/5 of the screen you get the preview of the edge of the post you have selected. It looks out of place at first, but I quickly got used to it and now it makes sense to be there.
To read an article, either touch on it, or touch on the preview (the right 1/5 of the screen) and drag to the left, uncovering the post. To see comments, grab the bottom bar (which has the up/down vote buttons and other information) and drag up. To go back to the subreddit and see more posts, grab the left edge of the screen and pull right, reducing the post back to the tall, slim preview it was before.
If you want to get rid of the "panel overlap" feature, you can do so in the settings (this is the preview on the right 1/5 of the page or so). This makes the app appear and act more like a traditional Reddit app (which could be for some people...not me though).
This app has less than 10,000 downloads, requires 1.1MB of storage, and android 4.0 and up. I really think it deserves some recognition. It's a very solid Reddit app, which looks amazing. It is missing more advanced features (mod options such as Reddit is Fun offers), but that's to be expected from a beta app. It's worth the free, small download. Maybe if you like it, you could suggest it to a friend!
Nexus 4 - first impressions
I've only had the Nexus 4 for 24 hours at the time of writing this post, but it's been long enough to give you guys an idea of what to expect from Google's baby.
The first thing I noticed when I unboxed it was that it really is a minimal design on the front - I'd describe it as a sleek slab of sophistication. Design is really important to me when I'm looking for electronics I plan to use for long periods of time, and the Nexus 4 really does it for me. The top and bottom bezel is the same size, the earpiece and front cameras are places far away from the screen, and the LED notification light is invisible until it's turned on.
The back of the phone shines in all the right places. The Nexus and LG logos shine, and in any well-lit area the shimmering effect on the back is noticeable. The only imperfections on the otherwise interrupted glass back are the speaker grill, and a slightly raised edge around the flash LED (oddly not around the camera itself).
The screen is sharp, and with really good colors. When you put it next to some other devices whites aren't quite as white (when compared to say an iPhone), but by itself you won't notice any discoloration at all. I'm still in the air about on-screen buttons...they are a novel idea, but they do take up screen space and get accidently pressed more often than either physical buttons or capasitive buttons (which are often placed further away from the screen).
Performance is amazing - I've only seen the Nexus 4 studder when in specific apps (I'll blame the apps...maybe the compatability with JB 4.2), and even when having many HD apps open multitasking was extremely quick. Loading apps was also the snappiest I've seen yet - thanks to it's quad core pocessor.
Getting down to the nit-picky: I've gotten used to having the headphone jack on the bottom of phones I've used, so I always pick it up upsidedown when I take it out of my pocket. It also doesn't help that there's hardly any physical features on the phone to distinguish front from back or top from bottom without looking at it. Already I've cleaned out the phone speaker on the front multiple times as it gathers all the lint in your pockets (on the bright side my pockets are cleaner than ever!).
I've got a case and skin in the mail as we speak, so I'm taking no chances. The Nexus has a slippery back, and I've herd many report it sliding off "flat" surfaces (such as a kitchen table) and shattering either the front or back glass.
Not that it means much, but my use yesterday started at around 11am, and after downloading all my apps and regular use after that it was at 15% battery when I went to bed at midnight. Not too bad considering the amount of downloading I was doing (about 10GB) and screen on time adjusting the settings to my preferences for all the apps I use often.
It's too early to give a solid verdict, but I've got really good feelings about the Nexus 4. It's the first LG phone I've ever used, and I am really impressed so far. With hardware like this, I wouldn't be surprised to see LG surpass some other major smartphone manufacturers!
Let me know what you think about the Nexus 4, if you want to see it do anything, or for anything else Nexus 4 related by commenting below, or send an email to QandAndroid@gmail.com. Also, check the new blog I'm starting (with the help of others) withing the next week. It's set to cover multiple mobile OSs. You can find the work in progress at http://corelesscore.blogspot.ca/.
The first thing I noticed when I unboxed it was that it really is a minimal design on the front - I'd describe it as a sleek slab of sophistication. Design is really important to me when I'm looking for electronics I plan to use for long periods of time, and the Nexus 4 really does it for me. The top and bottom bezel is the same size, the earpiece and front cameras are places far away from the screen, and the LED notification light is invisible until it's turned on.
The back of the phone shines in all the right places. The Nexus and LG logos shine, and in any well-lit area the shimmering effect on the back is noticeable. The only imperfections on the otherwise interrupted glass back are the speaker grill, and a slightly raised edge around the flash LED (oddly not around the camera itself).
The screen is sharp, and with really good colors. When you put it next to some other devices whites aren't quite as white (when compared to say an iPhone), but by itself you won't notice any discoloration at all. I'm still in the air about on-screen buttons...they are a novel idea, but they do take up screen space and get accidently pressed more often than either physical buttons or capasitive buttons (which are often placed further away from the screen).
Performance is amazing - I've only seen the Nexus 4 studder when in specific apps (I'll blame the apps...maybe the compatability with JB 4.2), and even when having many HD apps open multitasking was extremely quick. Loading apps was also the snappiest I've seen yet - thanks to it's quad core pocessor.
Getting down to the nit-picky: I've gotten used to having the headphone jack on the bottom of phones I've used, so I always pick it up upsidedown when I take it out of my pocket. It also doesn't help that there's hardly any physical features on the phone to distinguish front from back or top from bottom without looking at it. Already I've cleaned out the phone speaker on the front multiple times as it gathers all the lint in your pockets (on the bright side my pockets are cleaner than ever!).
I've got a case and skin in the mail as we speak, so I'm taking no chances. The Nexus has a slippery back, and I've herd many report it sliding off "flat" surfaces (such as a kitchen table) and shattering either the front or back glass.
Not that it means much, but my use yesterday started at around 11am, and after downloading all my apps and regular use after that it was at 15% battery when I went to bed at midnight. Not too bad considering the amount of downloading I was doing (about 10GB) and screen on time adjusting the settings to my preferences for all the apps I use often.
It's too early to give a solid verdict, but I've got really good feelings about the Nexus 4. It's the first LG phone I've ever used, and I am really impressed so far. With hardware like this, I wouldn't be surprised to see LG surpass some other major smartphone manufacturers!
Let me know what you think about the Nexus 4, if you want to see it do anything, or for anything else Nexus 4 related by commenting below, or send an email to QandAndroid@gmail.com. Also, check the new blog I'm starting (with the help of others) withing the next week. It's set to cover multiple mobile OSs. You can find the work in progress at http://corelesscore.blogspot.ca/.
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